In a modern world, healthcare must be on the cutting edge of technological changes and advancements. This is true for both treating patients and diagnostics, to admin, efficiency, and even marketing. You can offer the best service in the world with the most advanced treatment options, but if no one knows you exist, then they won’t be taking you up on your treatment options. It is as simple as that.
When it comes to marketing your healthcare facility at a bare minimum, you need a website. With over 80% of people searching for something online, you need to ensure that when they need your healthcare services, you are at the top of the search results. To get there and build a good first impression of your business, this post looks at some crucial factors for designing the best healthcare website possible.
Build in HIPAA and Data Compliance to Your Design
Data compliance is one of the most important things to consider when designing a healthcare website. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is a federal law that sets standards for the privacy and security of protected health information (PHI). As a healthcare provider, you must comply with HIPAA regulations, and your website must reflect this compliance. You need to ensure that your website is HIPAA compliant and that all patient data is secure.
You should work with a website designer who has the experience and in-depth knowledge of HIPAA security and can provide you with a secure site that meets all of your HIPPa regulations and ensures data is kept safe at all times. With cybercrime on the rise, it is more important than ever that medical businesses are secure and compliant.
Use Data Visualization
Data visualization is a powerful tool that can help you communicate complex information to your patients. It can also help you improve your website’s SEO by making it more engaging and shareable. Data visualization can take many forms, including charts, graphs, and infographics.
Using clear images and videos can help you to convey messaging appropriately and help patients understand what to expect from you.
Charts and graphs can be beneficial in breaking down data and helping people to understand information easier and faster. Charts using simple designs and layouts and a warm color palette can help patients to decipher test results, analyze procedure success rates, and get to grips with their own health via their accounts easier than black text on a white screen. Make it visual, easy to follow, and uncluttered for improved usability.
It Needs to be Mobile Responsive
As mentioned above, over 80% of people search for something online before making contact; however, over 90% of users access the internet via mobile phones.
Recent Google updates will favor websites that are designed for mobile use and are easily accessible via mobile devices. So while your website might look amazing and perform well via a desktop, if you aren’t setting it up for mobile use, you will not only eliminate a broad section of users and patients but fall foul of google guidelines, meaning you will lose online visibility.
Conduct plenty of testing on all aspects of your website across multiple devices to ensure consistency and that the user experience is exactly the same; however, they access the website.
It Should Have Informative Content in Non-Medical Jargon
When it comes to healthcare, patients want information that is easy to understand. That’s why it’s essential to use non-medical jargon when creating content for your website. Patients should be able to easily understand the information on your website without having to look up medical terms.
Avoid using overly complicated medical speech that most people won’t understand. It might seem like you are dumbing things down. But the general public won’t be aware of medical terminology. This can have a detrimental effect on your website and the ease with which your patients digest the information contained on it, especially if they are looking up health symptoms or trying to access their own records.
Remember, you still need to be compliant with all the regulations for your industry, so using a company such as Howling Brands can help, as our team is well-versed in the specific compliance, privacy, and regulatory guidelines that are unique to the healthcare industry. Meaning you get the content you need, both visual and written, that is within all the requirements unique to your industry.
It Needs Simple and Clear Search and Navigation
Don’t have people scrolling through pages and pages of information because they can’t find what they are looking for. Ensure your stricture is clear, easy to follow, and designed with some forethought regarding how people will move around it. Have a search function in multiple parts of the page and precise internal linking to tie relevant pages and content together.
Use menus with clear typography and wording that is easy to understand, use filters, sort functions, and breadcrumb trails and ensure search terms are highlighted in the results when generated on your websites for more effortless user experiences. If people can’t find what they need, they will instantly turn off, and having a robust navigation and search function can help you to avoid that happening.
It Needs to be ADA Compliant
Ensuring that your website is ADA-compliant is essential for creating a website that is accessible to everyone, including those with disabilities. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires that businesses provide equal access to goods and services, including websites. You can achieve this using features like alt tags for images, video captions, and descriptive navigation links.
It’s also essential to ensure that your website’s layout is easy to navigate for those with disabilities. This can include using a simple and straightforward design, contrasting colors, and a font that is easy to read.
Other adjustments you should make include the website being able to be read by screen readers for partially sighted or blind visitors, using text for captions in videos for deaf users, and having a website that can be navigated via a keyboard, not just a mouse for those with limited motor functions.
Conclusion
There are a lot of complexities that go into making your healthcare website the best it can be. It all starts with finding a suitable web designer who knows exactly what to do and what you require for compliance and can still craft a beautiful and responsive website that is easy to use and a credit to your business.
